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T O P I C R E V I E W

NASA Videographer

Anyone out there have any interesting stories about German rocket pioneer Hans Fichtner? We will be interviewing him this afternoon (April 4, 2006) and I want to make sure we cover all the bases.

eurospace

Here is a quote I have from a letter he wrote:

It is always pleasing to hear from someone interested in the space program. I am sorry my writing is not to good any more, since I am almost blind. But to satisfy your request, I will give you a brief personal history.

I worked at Peenemünde to design the control system of the A4. Later I laid out the electrical system for the V-2 ground and airborne. Arrived at the States with the 55 specialists Nov 17, 45, designed the electrical system for all White Sands V-2 launches in the first 1 1/2 years.

Did all the electrical systems design for Redstone, Redstone AC, Mercury-Redstone, Jupiter, Persing. Was totally responsible for the entire ground and airborne electrical systems for the Apollo 100, 200 series, all Saturn V firings and Skylab after Apollo project.

Was chief engineer for the satellite series high energy astronomy observatory (HEAO). Worked as a consultant for the layout of the Spacelab. Electrical system with ESA in the Netherlands 1975/76. Introduced the automated, computerized checkout and firing sequence during the Saturn/Apollo program.

Robert Pearlman

The Huntsville Times reported in October 2012 that Hans Fichtner died on Oct. 21, 2012. He was 95.

Fichtner was drafted into the German Army during World War II and was with von Braun in Germany when von Braun's team used forced prisoner labor to make V-2 rockets launched against Britain. Later, he surrendered with von Braun to the United States as a part of the famous rocket team code-named "Paperclip" by American authorities.

Once in America, Fichtner came with the team to Huntsville, where von Braun led development of the rockets that launched America's first satellites -- and later its world-famous astronauts -- into space. Fichtner's job was among the most critical. He oversaw Marshall Space Flight Center's development of the electrical system for the Saturn V moon rocket. Fichtner also developed the automated check-out system that allowed the miles of complex electronics to check themselves before each launch.